Thread for supporters who feel lost

[barmy44]

So because the team performed well in round 1 against a bottom 4 side, all issues are rectified?

agreed... an excellent round 1 showing at a ground we sometimes struggle at, against a team we sometimes struggle against. but thats all it was.

need to do that at least another 14/16 times, then continue it through finals. whatever plan/system is in place, now is the prime time for it to hopefully succeed.

much better performance last weekend than i was expecting, though.

 

[bph25]

So because the team performed well in round 1 against a bottom 4 side, all issues are rectified?

Freo are bottom four are they?
Think they may surprise you.
A lot of these issues everyone speaks of need to be addressed and so far so good.
People's expectations that we should always be the number one side at all times are ridiculous

 

[BlightysCats]

If it's in his PD he's responsible for it , plain and simple - doesn't mean he runs the whole shooting match
So little grasp of how Organisations function - what do you do for a living champ?

I know how organisations function, but footy clubs aren't normal organisations there's a lot more ego attached especially at the highest levels. Just thought I'd share a little section from James Buttons book 'Comeback.' 'Geelong is Cooks club now. What it has become - it's achievements, failures and enduring challenges - is his legacy.'
As for what I do I don't like to share too much personal stuff like that on here in general, but what I will say is I've worked for the AFL in the past and in the corporate sector as well and currently I'm doing absolutely nothing (it's beautiful) because I'm in the last days of being about to move OS to work. My knowledge of the clubs workings comes from somebody close to me that used to (until fairly recently) have a lot to do with the club - Cook has immense power and while I don't claim he oversees every little detail of the club or micro manages in any way he does control the broader direction of the club both on and off field, especially off field.

 

[BlightysCats]

out of curiousity BlightysCats - and genuine question:

we aggressively trade out our current stars starting october 2017, and wells hits the draft HARD over the next few seasons. joel corey comes in as head coach.

the draftees are, on the whole, classic wells 'left of centre' picks. they arent that good. joel corey turns out to be a very poor head coach.

in 10 years time, geelong select their latest in a string of top 4 picks. most experts predict he will again amount to little, much like the last 5.

how do you feel then? again, genuine question... im not trying to inflame anything.

I don't feel that would happen, I trust Wells to recruit good kids especially with good picks, I trust Corey and his time both at Geelong under Bomber and under Beveridge to be able to teach them the right way, I trust the stable environment of our club and the new culture the kids playing for it would create based on the solid foundations of the Bomber/Beveridge values Corey would bring to the table, and I trust a clear plan for success. By presuming it'd all fall apart you lack trust in Wells, Corey, and the club in general.

 

[Biggy_Boy]

Freo are bottom four are they?
Think they may surprise you.
A lot of these issues everyone speaks of need to be addressed and so far so good.
People's expectations that we should always be the number one side at all times are ridiculous

They were last year, and they were ordinary in round 1. Not every side will be as bad as kicking and marking the ball as they were. Most won't.

 

[dazbroncos]

Tread warily people.

Lets not be telling others what they think.

That leads down the s**t fight argument path really fast.

GO Catters

 

[barmy44]

I don't feel that would happen, I trust Wells to recruit good kids especially with good picks, I trust Corey and his time both at Geelong under Bomber and under Beveridge to be able to teach them the right way, I trust the stable environment of our club and the new culture the kids playing for it would create based on the solid foundations of the Bomber/Beveridge values Corey would bring to the table, and I trust a clear plan for success. By presuming it'd all fall apart you lack trust in Wells, Corey, and the club in general.

ok - thanks man.

 

[Gavin Excell]

I never disputed this ^ but flags being hard to win isn't the issue this thread is dealing with it's the way in which you plan to deliver a flag and we've abandoned a system that worked astoundingly well for us for a new system that's delivered precisely sweet F all to date and seems won't in the near future.

Im with you on this Blighty. I see the club being competitive, making finals but not a geunine flag challenger. The question i have for you though is whether the supporter base has the stomach and patience for a slow rebuild?

 

[BlightysCats]

Im with you on this Blighty. I see the club being competitive, making finals but not a geunine flag challenger. The question i have for you though is whether the supporter base has the stomach and patience for a slow rebuild?

Thanks for being with me at least on this Gav, supporters probably wouldn't be happy about a fall but if the club gives supporters the right narrative about enjoying the journey, watching really talented kids develop, a new beginning with a club legend as our coach, I reckon most supporters would buy in.

 

[Vdubs]

Thanks for being with me at least on this Gav, supporters probably wouldn't be happy about a fall but if the club gives supporters the right narrative about enjoying the journey, watching really talented kids develop, a new beginning with a club legend as our coach, I reckon most supporters would buy in.

But my argument is you can have all that anyway, after we are completely devoid of any competitive chance of a top 4 finish, which so far in 2016, and now, is not apparent. If our current regime has failed once our core of stars, as in Hawkins, Selwood, Taylor and Danger have gone, we do this complete rebuild. We start that theoretically in 2022.

 

[BlightysCats]

But my argument is you can have all that anyway, after we are completely devoid of any competitive chance of a top 4 finish, which so far in 2016, and now, is not apparent. If our current regime has failed once our core of stars, as in Hawkins, Selwood, Taylor and Danger have gone, we do this complete rebuild. We start that theoretically in 2022.

Yeah except then we have to finish 5-6 years down the bottom to get 5/6 top 10 picks, if we trade out players with currency in the next few years we can get extra top ten picks and only spend 3-4 years down the bottom plus we'd still have Danger, Mitch Duncan, etc. around to help guide the kids develop. If we wait till Selwood/Hawkins/Danger are too old then we do have the possibility of an apocalypse where we linger down the bottom for years and stuff up a rebuild simply because there are no established older players for the kids to learn from.

 

[BlightysCats]

A lot of these issues everyone speaks of need to be addressed and so far so good.

Agree with you there, but let's see if we can play the same way against quality opposition, my guess is we'll go back to slow movement and bombing it long and aimlessly inside forward 50 soon enough.

 

[Biggy_Boy]

Im with you on this Blighty. I see the club being competitive, making finals but not a geunine flag challenger. The question i have for you though is whether the supporter base has the stomach and patience for a slow rebuild?

It's a meaningless question because the supporters will have to deal with it at some point. It's only been a question of whether it occurs sooner or later.

 

[Spazz Cat]

Im with you on this Blighty. I see the club being competitive, making finals but not a geunine flag challenger. The question i have for you though is whether the supporter base has the stomach and patience for a slow rebuild?

Depends on the supporter. Personally I really enjoyed the down times first few years under Bomber. Most games I've ever been too during that time.
Not so much the late Ayers years.
It was great. Every year the crowds started to get bigger and it felt like you were sort of growing with the players and the club. I have lifelong friends from going to the footy together during those years.

This situation I dunno. It just feels like we are just happy to be up there and be competitive and bring in players every year to maintain that. On top of that it feels like we are more concerned on picking certain players than giving ourselves our best chance anyway, so at times it can just seem futile. Eg. Backline is too tall but we get Rivers anyway so gotta play him, no place for Jimmy so stick him down back, Backline still too tall so put Harry forward as we can't drop him,etc etc
If we win a flag I'll be really stoked but it's hard for me to see with the cattle we've got.
I'm not trying to start s**t but it's just my feelings and I understand I'm completely in the minority on here but I would be more excited by the "traditional" path than what we are doing now. But that's just me.

 

[Gavin Excell]

There is an argument also that if you have the best player in the comp you throw everything at having a crack

 

[Spazz Cat]

There is an argument also that if you have the best player in the comp you throw everything at having a crack

Yep absolutely. I'm not saying what's wrong or right. I'm just saying excitement and enjoyment levels for me personally.
Also if we do win a flag it would totally be worth it as they are rare.

 

[Gavin Excell]

^^ Ken Oath

 

[Vdubs]

Yeah except then we have to finish 5-6 years down the bottom to get 5/6 top 10 picks, if we trade out players with currency in the next few years we can get extra top ten picks and only spend 3-4 years down the bottom plus we'd still have Danger, Mitch Duncan, etc. around to help guide the kids develop. If we wait till Selwood/Hawkins/Danger are too old then we do have the possibility of an apocalypse where we linger down the bottom for years and stuff up a rebuild simply because there are no established older players for the kids to learn from.

You are assuming that we have no resources in our current list, player wise, and MC wise.
There may be some development in many of our players.
Duncan, Guthrie, Blic, Parsons, Cocky....., there will be progress.

 

[BlightysCats]

Duncan, Guthrie, Blic, Parsons, Cocky....., there will be progress.

I'll give you a chance at the rest, but none for Blitz.

 

[Seeds]

There is an argument also that if you have the best player in the comp you throw everything at having a crack

We recruited him. We didn't have him.

 

[Seeds]

It's a meaningless question because the supporters will have to deal with it at some point. It's only been a question of whether it occurs sooner or later.

And to what extent.

 

[barmy44]

We recruited him. We didn't have him.

well, he was older than a typical recruit at the time, but we were definitely the first to 'have him' - we drafted blicavs in the 2012 rookie draft.

 

[geelong_crazy26]

But my argument is you can have all that anyway, after we are completely devoid of any competitive chance of a top 4 finish, which so far in 2016, and now, is not apparent. If our current regime has failed once our core of stars, as in Hawkins, Selwood, Taylor and Danger have gone, we do this complete rebuild. We start that theoretically in 2022.

People tend to talk like we just finished the season 7-8th and fell off the perch. We made a preliminary final and finished third. How finishing third and making a preliminary final falls into the "floating around and just competitive" bracket is quite incorrect and just rediculous to really say. Anyone who makes a prelim is only improvements away from a premiership and needs to throw everything at it while they are around.

Sides have and do go 50-70 years without winning premierships. Please go ask doggies and saints supporters how many "rebuilds" they have gone through combined for just 1 doggies flag. These so called easy as pie plans where you just drop down the ladder for 4-5 years and then walk back to a premiership is complete naive uneducated crap that distances so far from reality it isn't funny. St kilda Bulldogs have about a combined total of 100+ years of rebuilds for one premiership a piece, and Melbourne aren't much better, go ask them about this simple and straight forward method for a flag. They are just so hard and rare to win, while your up and about and in the top four you need to throw the kitchen sink at it, then once you drop down again you simply rebuild.

 

[Biggy_Boy]

People tend to talk like we just finished the season 7-8th and fell off the perch. We made a preliminary final and finished third. How finishing third and making a preliminary final falls into the "floating around and just competitive" bracket is quite incorrect and just rediculous to really say. Anyone who makes a prelim is only improvements away from a premiership and needs to throw everything at it while they are around.

4 finals campaigns in 5 years for 2 finals wins probably has something to do with it. It's the apparent inevitability of finals failure that instills the notion that Geelong has been competitive without having the capacity to challenge.

 

[BlightysCats]

Please go ask doggies and saints supporters how many "rebuilds" they have gone through combined for just 1 doggies flag.

3.
2 to the Saints, the first of which got them to 3 Grand Finals the second which they're currently in the midst of but already seems promising. 1 to the Dogs who won a flag and will compete for many more (and by compete I actually genuinely mean compete not the 'compete' like some Geelong supporters on here think we have in the last 5 years).